


Ripples

by thisbluespirit



Category: Sapphire and Steel
Genre: 17th Century, Ficlet, Gen, Genremixer, Humor, Witch Hunts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-07-27 10:49:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20044759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisbluespirit/pseuds/thisbluespirit
Summary: Silver gets a good ducking.





	Ripples

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 100 Elements prompt #84: Silver/Copper – witch hunt & family

“I suppose you’re going to be tiresome about this.”

Copper put his hand to the cell door and when it didn’t immediately open, drew back with a frown and ran his fingers over the lock until he felt the obstruction – something outside of its mechanism. He touched it again and the door opened to reveal Silver sitting in the cell. The same sense of something being off-kilter that had caused the lock to behave so awkwardly was stronger in here. Copper stiffened, mistrusting the feeling.

“You created an adequate distraction,” said Copper, in belated response to Silver’s comment. “But why are you still in here?”

Silver shook himself. “I don’t know. I couldn’t seem to get out. I blame the duckweed.”

“I don’t think it’s that,” said Copper. He put out a hand to brush some of the duckweed in question off Silver’s shoulder. As far as he could tell, it was innocent organic matter, although Copper wasn’t as finely attuned to these matters as many of his colleagues. “You’re still damp. I felt something wrong. Not a malfunction?”

Silver shook himself, instantly restored to pristine condition. Copper could feel the earlier sense of wrongness receding.

“I think,” Silver murmured, brushing down the sleeves of his coat, “there was something else in the water. It saw me. Perhaps even got the measure of me.” Satisfied with his current state, he looked across at Copper. “I hope you’ve retrieved that brooch after all that. It would be just like you to have lost its location again.”

Copper permitted himself a smile. “Oh, I found it. Your antics distracted the humans quite satisfactorily. Certainly long enough for me to retrieve it and for Iron to do what was necessary.”

“A distraction,” said Silver, his mouth turned down in distaste. “That isn’t what I’m _for_, Copper. I’m a technician. So, if everything is over at last, I think we should go. Unless it isn’t, of course, and you need my help – as usual.”

Copper led him out down the corridor. “The humans should cease their paranoia now its influence has been removed. The witch hunts should end. I doubt they’d have gone through with trying to burn you now even if I hadn’t let you out.”

“Should isn’t very reassuring,” said Silver, straightening his coat and tweaking the sleeves. 

Copper blinked, noting with mild annoyance that Silver had added an extra half a dozen buttons to the garment, to no purpose whatsoever. His fellow technician was clearly reverting to his usual self. 

“And,” Silver continued, “I suppose you’re going to mention this in your debriefing, and they’ll keep us working together for even longer – which, Copper, you know is a waste of expertise.”

Copper stared ahead. “It might be dishonest to omit the incident,” he said. In his opinion, Silver frequently needed a close eye kept on him. That it fell to him was, of course, merely his misfortune.

“Just admit it,” said Silver, giving him a wicked smile. “You can’t manage without me. I quite understand, Copper.”

Copper ignored that irrelevant comment, as he so often did. “I don’t see why you went to such lengths to gain the humans’ attention, though. It’s not as if Iron couldn’t have handled matters without you causing a riot.”

“Oh,” said Silver, his expression shifting. He glanced away, as they reached the end of the stone-walled corridor. “Yes. Well, how was I to know that I wasn’t supposed to float?”


End file.
